


Watch How Quickly It Disappears

by rosewiththorns



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Detroit Red Wings, Discipline, Disrespect, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Loss, M/M, Non-Sexual Submission, Retirement, Spanking, Tantrum, cursing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-19
Updated: 2016-06-19
Packaged: 2018-07-16 01:30:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,186
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7246762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rosewiththorns/pseuds/rosewiththorns
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alexey can act like he hates Pavel for leaving the Red Wings, but that doesn't mean it's the truth or that Hank will tolerate it. Written per reader request. Set after Pavel's retirement announcement.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Watch How Quickly It Disappears

“Life is so fragile, and love so pure.  
We can’t hold on but we try.  
We watch how quickly it disappears,   
and we never know why.”—Linda Ronstadt

Watch How Quickly It Disappears

Alexey felt cold as a corpse, which was probably only fitting since hearing Pavel announce his retirement in front of a mass of scribbling and inquisitive reporters made Alexey feel as if he were attending his own autopsy, and he wanted to blame the fact that he was numb and shivering on the enthusiastic air conditioning system, but the sweat dampening his hoodie made it hard to believe that it was an external chill, rather than an internal one, gripping him. 

His mind was running a perpetual loop of Pavel memories—Pavel’s wry grin as he teased Alexey, Pavel nudging his shoulder encouragingly on the bench after a smart play, Pavel dancing past him when they worked out together after practice, and a hundred other ordinary moments that had been transfigured into something special by the Magic Man—so at first he didn’t notice Pavel grasping his elbow and steering him into a private meeting room after the press conference officially concluded. 

He should have been grateful that Pavel wanted to talk to him instead of mingling with the host of reporters as desperate for quotes as leeches were for blood, but he felt bitter as a scorned lover. When Pavel squeezed his arm gently and said he wanted to speak to him, the resentment spilled out of Alexey’s mouth as he scoffed, “Don’t lie to me. I know you just want to escape that zoo of reporters out there.” 

“That’s not true.” Pavel’s grip tightened, and Alexey wasn’t sure whether it was intended as reprimand, reassurance, or both. “I want to know if you’re okay, Lyosha.” 

“Don’t pretend to give a shit about me.” Alexey gritted his teeth, speaking his anger, because that felt less dangerous than admitting his pain. “If you cared about me or the team, you wouldn’t be in such a damn hurry to leave before your contract was over, would you?” 

“I’m not built for NHL hockey any longer.” Pavel sigh was weighed down by sorrow, and Alexey would have been sympathetic if he wasn’t cutting himself from any emotion that wasn’t outrage or indignation. “I also have a family to think of, Lyosha. Would you want me to let my daughter enter her teenage years without her papa.” 

“She’s managed so far without you,” pointed out Alexey with a derisive eye roll. “She probably could survive one more year without you, but since you’ve suddenly decided to pretend to be a family man, I hope your precious daughter enjoys taking you away from us.” 

By from “us,” Alexey really meant from “me,” but that sounded too selfish when he was berating Pavel for being self-centered, so Alexey decided to focus on the insult to the team, rather than the personal affront he was feeling, because Pavel had promised to always be there for him, and now he was leaving just after Alexey’s rookie year…

“Don’t talk to me like that,” scolded Pavel, giving Alexey a slight shake.

The shake rattled Alexey to the core and prompted him to explode, as he yanked himself away from Pavel, “Fuck off, bastard. I hate you, and if you’re in such a damn rush to leave, I wish that you would just leave, so I can celebrate your absence.” 

Alexey had expected Pavel to retort or to offer comfort, but he had not anticipated Pavel to attempt to wiggle out of the situation by murmuring, “I’m sorry you’re so upset, Lyosha, but we’ll have to talk about this later, because I have a camp to run.”

“Go then,” snarled Alexey, stamping his foot into the plush carpet. “You’re always fleeing from problems and not caring about the pain you leave behind, aren’t you?” 

“He might be leaving.” A sharp voice from the doorway made Alexey’s head jerk around, and his stomach twisted when he saw that the newcomer was his captain, who did not look as if he were particularly enamored with Alexey’s behavior. “But I’m not.” 

“Wish you would. Nobody invited you here.” Alexey figured that he was too far into the insolent swamp to retreat now, so he kept his tone as accusatory as possible to hide his nervousness as he demanded, “What are you doing here, anyway?” 

“Dealing with your rotten attitude.” Hank’s words were addressed to Alexey, but his gaze was fixed—almost inquiringly—on Pavel. “That way Pav can go back to running his camp, kid.” 

Pavel nodded, tapped Alexey’s arm, and clapped Hank on the back before exiting. In his wake, Alexey gaped after him, astonished and hurt that Pavel would leave discipling him to anyone else, even if it was the captain, although, Alexey noted resentfully, he probably should get used to that, since Pavel was absconding back to Russia and leaving an entire organization reeling as it came to grips with what life without its most magical player—forever and not just for the recovery time of an injury or operation—meant. 

“Alexey.” Hank stepped forward and cupped Alexey’s taut jaw between his palms. “I know you’re upset about Pav leaving—“ 

“I’m not upset about Pasha leaving, Z,” interrupted Alexey, glaring into Hank’s chestnut eyes, which were too composed for such a tumultuous situation and made Alexey angrier than ever. “I’m fucking furious at him for leaving, because he’s skipping out on us in the middle of his damn contract, which is exactly why everyone thinks Russians are the scum of the hockey world.” 

“Nobody who isn’t an ignorant bigot believes that Russians are the scum of the hockey world.” Hank shook his head, and went on firmly, “As I was saying before your outburst, I understand that you are upset to see Pav leave the Red Wings. I’m upset as well, but that doesn’t give us the right to treat him with disrespect—“ 

“Why not?” Alexey lifted his chin rebelliously out of Hank’s hands. “It’s not as if he’s our teammate anymore, since he bolted on us.” 

“He’ll always be a Red Wings legend. Nothing—even his leaving—can ever change that, and it’s not the Red Wings way to treat legends disrespectfully.” Hank grabbed Alexey’s shoulders and squeezed to capture Alexey’s attention. “Tantrums also aren’t the Red Wings way. We may call you ‘kid’ as an endearment, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to tolerate childish behavior you are many years too old for, and when you act like a child, you’ll be punished like one with a spanking.” 

“You’re going to spank me, Z?” Alexey stared at Hank, his cheeks burning. On the team, only Pavel had ever spanked him, and, if you didn’t count the occasional swat on the butt for impudence—which Alexey didn’t—that had only happened once. It really had never occurred to him that any Red Wing except Pavel would ever discipline him in such a fashion. 

“Yes.” Hank sat in a chair and patted his lap as if he were inviting Alexey to cuddle on it rather than bend over it for a spanking. “If you cooperate, Alexey, this will be quicker and easier for us both.” 

Salty tears stinging at his eyes as he blinked them back, Alexey, deciding that the only thing more humiliating than submitting to a spanking was the indignity of being wrestled into one (and probably earning extra smacks as the price for defiance), unzipped and lowered his jeans before laying across Hank’s knees. He felt Hank’s left palm press between his shoulder blades, locking him into position for the duration of his punishment, and he braced himself for a searing slap or lecture but was not prepared for Hank’s fingers slipping between the elastic of his briefs and tugging them down to encircle his thrashing thighs.

As his legs flailed an instinctive protest at this invasion of privacy, Alexey squawked, “Pasha never spanked me on the bare.” 

“You should’ve shown him a bit more respect and appreciation now in that case.” Hank brought his hand crashing down on Alexey’s naked backside, and the sound of flesh hitting flesh made Alexey wince as Hank blazed a trail down first his right cheek and then his left, asking in a mild manner that was at odds with the fires he was igniting in Alexey’s bottom, “Why are you in this uncomfortable position now, Alexey?” 

“You’re spanking me, Z.” Alexey gritted his teeth, stating the obvious because saying anything more emotional might make the tears misting his vision dribble down his flushed face. 

“Why am I spanking you?” Hank’s strong swats emphasized his disapproval of Alexey’s choice to be simplistic in his response. 

“Because I was mad at Pasha for leaving.” Alexey couldn’t hold back a sniffle that was soon followed by another as Hank smacked at his sit-spots. 

“No.” Hank’s hand and voice were unrelenting. “You’ll never be punished for your feelings, Alexey, but for how you express them if your behavior is unacceptable. How was your behavior unacceptable?” 

“I was disrespectful to Pasha, cursing at him and insulting his honor.” Alexey’s sniffles grew into cries that rattled his body. “And I had a tantrum like a brat.” 

“That’s right.” Hank re-kindled flames as he returned his smoldering attention to Alexey’s red rump. “If you ever do either of those things again, you’ll be sleeping on your stomach for a week, kid.” 

“I won’t, Z.” Sobbing, Alexey sagged across Hank’s lap. “I’m sorry for being a brat and a jerk to Pasha.” 

“I accept your apology, but you will apologize to Pav as well.” Hank delivered a final stinging smack to the center of Alexey’s rear as he made this stipulation. 

“Yes, Z.” Alexey’s tears had risen into a tidal wave that threatened to drown him as Hank rubbed calming circles between his shoulder blades and slid his jeans and underwear back to their original locations. The fabric traveling across the scorched terrain of his hindquarters made him howl, and he would have wondered if the wood door was weak enough for the media to hear through—if it was, the press would probably assume there was a savage werewolf trapped inside the meeting room—if his agony hadn’t erased every question but how much he had hurt Pavel with his words. 

“Sorry, Z.” Alexey found it difficult to breathe, nonetheless speak, as Hank cradled him against his chest, combing his hair away from his streaming eyes. “You and Pasha must hate me.” 

“I could never hate you.” Hank kissed the furrows out of Alexey’s forehead. “Neither could Pav. You’ll apologize to Pav, because that’s the right thing to do, and you’ll discover that he has already forgiven you, since he loves you, and you giving him a bit too much attitude won’t change that, kid.” 

“I love Pasha, too.” Alexey mopped the tears away from his cheeks with a swipe of his sleeve. “It’s just that I was so hurt by him leaving that I had to share some of my pain with him or else I couldn’t handle it.” 

“You can come to me next time the pain of him leaving feels like too much for you to handle alone.” Hank ruffled Alexey’s hair. “I’ll be happy to comfort you, especially if I don’t have to spank you first.” 

“Will you?” Alexey shot Hank a sidelong glance over his shoulder. “Pasha promised that he would always be around to hold me and wipe away all of my tears, and he’s going back to Russia when I’m still trying to find my place on this team.” 

“Pav did those things for me, too, and he was my best friend on this team since my rookie year, so I was the one who did those things for him.” Hank squeezed Alexey’s shaking shoulder. “Next season will be my first without him by my side. It’s going to be hard, but we’re going to have to be brave and face it as a team by supporting each other, not disrespecting one another or throwing tantrums. Understand?” 

“Yes,” whispered Alexey, burying his face in Hank’s shirt, utterly ashamed of his earlier attitude. “I’ll be a better teammate next time, Z. I swear.” 

“Good boy.” Hank patted his back in affectionate approval. “Now, believe it or not, I didn’t come in here to punish you, but to take care of you in what I know will be a very challenging time for you. I thought we could go golfing and get some ice cream to have some fun and take our minds off things for a bit.” 

“I’d like that.” Alexey grinned. “If the offer still stands, that is.” 

“It does.” Hank smiled and nudged Alexey off his lap. “Let’s go hit the links, and by the time we’re done, Pav will probably have wrapped his camp up for the day, so you can speak to him again and give him an apology. Between you and me, I think we’ll have a more enjoyable day than he will because we’ll have ice cream.”


End file.
